#manono

I think she’s neat 😊

(Memorial at Kuamo’o)

Manono - Warrior chiefess

Manono ( c.1780 -1819) was the wife of Hawaiian Chief Kekuaokalani and is remembered for fighting alongside her husband. By 1819, Hawaiian society was divided regarding the survival of the native religion. King Kamehameha II and his regent, Kaʻahumanu, broke the sacred kapu system, notably by having women eating with the men. Kaʻahumanu also converted to Christianity and encouraged the king to dismantle the temples.

Manono and Kekuaokalani rose in defense of the old religion. Their efforts culminated in the Battle of Kuamo’o in 1819. Manono fought bravely by her husband’s side. After the chief was killed, she was hit in the temple by a musket ball and fell dead.

Interestingly, oral tradition remembers Manono as having trained warrior women. Elder Mahilani Poepoe (1946–2004) recounts that Manono was a strong, beautiful and athletic woman, an excellent swimmer and a crack spear-thrower. She raised queen Kaʻahumanu as a warrior woman and trained other women to protect her. 

This is indeed in keeping with previous examples of female warriors on the islands. Native elder Kahu Naone, a Lua  (a native fighting art) expert, told many facts about Hawaiian female warriors during an interview. Pōpoki (cat) was the name given to female warriors since they used “crouching and spring” fighting techniques and cat-like movements that were difficult to read. These women used their flexibility to their advantage. 

Pōpokis used the same weapons as male Lua practitioners, such as the ma‘a and pōhaku (sling and stone), some also used a pikoi (tripping cord). Those women were also adept at dissimulating their warrior identity and creating new weapons. Their headpieces could thus be used for self-defense and they tucked small knives in their pareo. Pōpokis were royal women and were taught the fighting arts to protect themselves and avoid capture. Lua teachers would also train their daughters.

King Kamehameha I had three divisions of warrior women trained in Lua. Chiefesses accompanied their husband into the battle of Nu’uanu Pali in 1795, they were experts in the use of the European musket and constituted the first line of offense against the enemy.

References:

Cupchoy Lani, “Fragments of Memory Tales of a Wahine Warrior”